Herbert D. Kastle (1924-1987) was a Brooklyn-born American writer of various types of books including paperback originals from the late 50s into the 80s. He also wrote stories for the science fiction magazines. He may be best remembered today for two classic Gold Medals – HOT PROWL and THE REASSEMBLED MAN. Later in his career he found success writing steamy “mainstream” hardcover novels in the style of Harold Robbins and Sidney Sheldon for publishers like Arbor House and Delacorte. I can’t blame Kastle for writing this stuff, the pay was good and the books were popular and you have to do what you gotta do to pay the rent and the kids’ tuition. They’re not bad books, in fact I hope you will enjoy them. They’re just not for me, not as collectible as the genre stuff he did earlier. It also never ceases to amaze me how raunchy all those later books are – the depravity and pervy sex and violence in these bestselling “mainstream” hardcovers always outstrips anything you can find in a sleazy sixties paperback. This is an overview of Kastle in both US and UK paperbacks, with special emphasis on the British reprints by Granada and Grafton. They put out PB editions of almost all of his books, most of them highlighted by flashy color wraparound photo covers by Beverley Le Barrow and Andrew Cockrill.

1957

ONE THING ON MY MIND – Popular Library 823, PBO

Canadian edition from Popular Library,
Toronto is shown here.

UK PBO
revised edition: Grafton 0-586-06576-8, 1986

Grafton, a division of the
Collins Publishing Group, continued the uniform wraparound photo cover format
of the
Granada
uniform edition shown below. Kastle’s later novels proved so popular in
Britain
that
his paperback publisher brought out new editions of his earliest novels. ONE
THING ON MY MIND had been out of print for almost 30 years.

If it is true that there are only
seven plots, then the plot of this story is SUPERMAN. Average schmuck Edward
Berner is given superhuman strength and sexual prowess and power by visiting
aliens studying Earth. The difference between Kastle’s Superman and the
Superman of the comics is that while the comic book Superman uses his powers
for the good of mankind, Edward Berner is strictly interested in
self-aggrandizement, personal gain, egocentric romantic conquests, bullying
and stupidity.

Copyright
page says “portions of this novel were previously published under the title
THE REASSEMBLED MAN”. To be more precise, the first 9½ chapters are new. From
halfway into chapter 10 until the end of the book, THE REASSEMBLED MAN is
reprinted in full with minor changes, such as an additional closing page.

UK: as THE THREE
LIVES OF EDWARD BERNER – WH Allen hc, 1976

UK PB:
Granada Mayflower 0 583
12617 0, 1978 (scarce)

1965

HOT PROWL
– Gold Medal d1591, PBO

Last book
as Herbert D. Kastle, after this he drops the middle initial.

UK PB: Mayflower 583
12763 0, 1977.

Granada 0 583 12763 0,
1982. 1984 reprint shown.

Publisher
creates confusion by assigning the same ISBN used on COUNTDOWN TO MURDER.

1968

THE MOVIE
MAKER – Bernard Geis hc

1st PB:
Dell 5866, 1969

With this
500-page bestselling blockbuster, Kastle created a new career as a
“mainstream” novelist.

UK: WH Allen hc,
1969

<
UK
PB:
Mayflower 583 11692 2, 1970

Granada 583 11692 2,
1973. Scan courtesy of Jack McIntyre.>

Grafton
1978 (not shown)

1969

MIAMI GOLDEN BOY –
Bernard Geis hc

1st PB:
Avon, 1971

Cover by
Robert McGinnis

UK
WH Allen hc, 1970

UK PB:
Granada Mayflower, 1972
(not shown)

<
Granada 0 583 12006 7,
1982, uniform edition

Grafton
not shown

The
kinky sex and soap opera formula of THE MOVIE MAKER was so successful Kastle
continued writing these the rest of his life.

The
British showed Dell what type of cover this title called for. The Mayflowers,
Granadas and Graftons cover models all seem to be Page Three Girls.

1972

MILLIONAIRES
– Delacorte hc

<1st
PB: Dell 5630, 1973

UK: WH Allen hc,
1972

UK PB:
Granada 1973

Granada
583-12078-3, 1982 (5th, uniform edition)>

Grafton
not shown

1973

ELLIE –
Delacorte hc

1st PB:
Dell 2176, 1974

Published
in
Great Britain
as LITTLE LOVE.

UK: as LITTLE LOVE,
WH Allen hc, 1973

<
UK
PB: Mayflower 583 12228 0, 1974

Granada 583
12228 0, 1982 uniform edition >

Grafton,
1986 not shown

1975

CROSS-COUNTRY
– Delacorte hc

<1st PB: Dell 4585, 1975

Reprint Dell 14585, 1984>

UK:WH Allen HC, 1975

<
UK
PB: Mayflower 583 12581 6, 1977

Granada 583
12581 6, 1979 (1985 reprint shown) >

Grafton not shown

1976

THE GANG
– Dell 2786, PBO

UK: WH Allen HC,
1977

UK
PB:
Granada Mayflower 0 583 12642 1, 1978

Grafton 583 12642 1, 1988

Scan
courtesy of Jack McIntyre. >

1977
DEATH SQUAD –Dell 13659, PBO. Scan courtesy of Richard Ahrons.

UK: WH Allen hc,
1978

UK PB as
HIT SQUAD – Granada Panther 1979 not shown

<
Granada Panther 583 13030 5, uniform edition, 1984

CROSS-COUNTRY and THE GANG are both about
manhunts for murderers, but the detective chasing them is the same guy in
both books. In DEATH SQUAD he takes on a vigilante group of cops, so this is
known as the third book in the Detective Sgt. Roersch trilogy.

1979

LADIES OF
THE VALLEY – Arbor House hc

1st PB:
Dell 14776, 1980. Cover art by Birney
Lettick.

DOLLS
OF THE VALLEY might have been a better title for this novel written in the
tradition of Jacqueline Susann and Gwen Davis.

The
Brits call this DIRTY MOVIES, which is a MUCH more accurate title. For one
thing, only one character in this book about
Hollywood
and
Beverly Hills
actually lives in the valley, and she’s no lady. Since the book is all about
the first porn movie made by a major studio, DIRTY MOVIES is just right.

UK: as DIRTY MOVIES,
WH Allen hc, 1979

UK PB:
Granada Mayflower 583 13155 7, 1980

Grafton
1989 not shown

And
it is a dirty book, about a burned-out
New York
Jewish writer selling out in
Hollywood
(I have no idea who Kastle could have based that character on), and a
producer who enjoys rape and little boys, and one of the filmmakers
moonlights as a serial killer. And all the actresses prostitute themselves
for film roles, and it is all way way over the top, totally depraved.

1980

SUNSET
PEOPLE – Jove 0-515-054887, PBO. Front and back covers shown.

UK: WH Allen, 1980

UK PB:
Granada Panther
0-583-13418-1, 1984

A woman
sets herself out as bait to catch the Sunset Strip serial killer who murdered
her sister.

1982

DAVID’S WAR
– no
US
edition found

UK: WH Allen hc

UK PB:
Granada Panther
0-583-13594-3, 1983

The
author’s final book.

Wraparound cover
photos on Granada/Grafton paperbacks

MOVIE MAKER and THE GANG covers provided by Jack
McIntyre

If you have additional Kastle uniform edition books or cover scans you would like to add to this project please e-mail me at lnmunroe@pacbell.net